African Art in Transit [Paperback]

Christopher B. Steiner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 28, 1994 | ISBN-10: 0521457521 | ISBN-13: 978-0521457521 | Edition: 1st Published 1994

Based on extensive research in West Africa, Christopher Steiner's book presents a richly detailed description of the economic networks that transfer art objects from their site of use and production in Africa to their point of consumption in art galleries and shops throughout Europe and America. In the course of this fascinating transcultural journey, African art acquires different meanings. It means one thing to the rural villagers who create and still use it in ritual and performance, another to the Muslim traders who barter and resell it, and something else to the buyers and collectors in the West who purchase it for investment and display it in their homes.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this specialized but illuminating work, Harvard-trained anthropologist Steiner analyzes the assumptions behind the work of native African art traders in Cote d'Ivoire, who serve as the link between African artists and Western collectors. He describes the trading process as not only a complex economic system but one of shifting cross-cultural exchange in which the image of Africa is continually redefined. Steiner classifies the range of sources and art objects available in the trading city of Abidjan, then describes how traders work. He analyzes different forms of bargaining (from careful negotiation with Western dealers to staged performance for tourists). More intriguingly, he argues that Western scholarship has influenced classification of art objects by ethnicity rather than by region, and observes how Africans seek authenticity in things Western, while visitors want symbols of a "primitive" lifestyle--as when he witnesses the barter of a mask for a Seiko watch. In the West, he notes, the practical value of African objects like baskets is ignored, while an obsession with the growing value of African art tends to negate appreciation of its beauty. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"...an important contribution to African studies as a whole, and anthropology of African art and economics in particular. It is a detailed and lucid ethnological account of the way in which middlemen construct value in the art markets in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. A vital study for anyone interested in contemporary African Art, it is, for the field to date, the most theoretically informed study of authenticity as a construct, and as it is used in the market to create value. For African art, it is a landmark study..." International Journal of African Historical Studies

"...a welcome contribution to the anthropology of art and transnational markets." Times Higher Education Supplement

"African Art in Transit is one of the most important works published in African studies in recent years; it is a work to be celebrated." Journal of African History

"[Steiner] can conjure the social milieu and dynamism of the African market as effortlessly as he can negotiate, with a souffleé lightness yet unerring insight, among the heavyweights of social theory." Antiquity

"A long needed, landmark volume which draws attention to an area of research generally neglected in both the art and sociological literature....I shall eagerly assign it in courses I teach." Anthropos

"The work is written in a clear, creative style, with eloquent descriptive phrases, making this important theoretical as well as factual and analytic study a reading delight. The bibliography and index are very complete; the references are meticulous in providing solid field documentation and other sources; and a 30-page section of notes contributes a wealth of additional, related information....This study fills a critical gap in the fields of anthropology and art history; it also contributes valuable cross-cultural materials to political economy and sociology." Choice

"Steiner has written an important and comprehensive description of trade in West African art objects...Steiner's book is very valuable to both anthropologists and art historians. He is an excellent fieldworker besides being thoroughly versed in the 'literature'." J. R. Rayfield, Canadian Journal of African Studies

"...specialized but illuminating work." Publishers Weekly

"'African Art in Transit' is an important contribution to African studies as a whole, and the anthropology of African art and economics in particular. A detailed and lucid ethnographic account of the way in which middlemen construct value in the art markets in Abijan, Cote d'Ivoire, it is, for the field to date, the most theoretically informed study of authenticity as a construct, and as it is used in the market to create value. For African art, it is a landmark study for the ways in which it brings social and economic theory to bear on the creation of surplus value through bargaining processes, that is, through the competitive 'meditation of knowledge' in the art market." Jonathan Zilberg, The International Journal of African Historical Studies

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; 1st Published 1994 edition (January 28, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521457521
• ISBN-13: 978-0521457521
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #362,959 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent introduction to African art and global art trade, November 17, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: African Art in Transit (Paperback)

This is a wonderful book which introduces the reader to African art in the context of the international market and art trade. As an African art collector, I learned a great deal about the "tricks" of the trade and the techniques of faking and market pricing. It is also fascinating to read about the lives of those who deal in African art, and how the trade impacts their religious convictions, as well as their personal and economic aspirations.

2 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars outdated, October 29, 2008

By 

Flozell Adama - See all my reviews

This review is from: African Art in Transit (Paperback)

This book was relevant 20 years ago,It has little

to do with today's market in African art.